Coal production has fallen by about 25 percent since 2001. The closing of coal-fired power plants has played a significant role in this decrease, Herdolt said.

"We don't struggle over whether our state should use coal or not," Herdolt said. "Other states, that's not the case."

Coal's inability to compete with the price of natural gas has also affected production; however, Herdolt added, there is not a "compelling drive" for utilities to completely abandon coal for natural gas.

And then a clown car roared into the meeting and several legislators poured out:

Sen. Ron Stolling, D-Boone, questioned why coal isn't lucrative enough for even power plants inside West Virginia to use the state's product. Herdolt said price is the problem. About 50 percent of the coal-fired power plants in the state use coal from other places, according to Stolling.

"It's all price," Herdolt said. "We had a lot of coal in storage. We had a mild winter last year, (and) we had a storage buildup."

Some lawmakers were concerned by what they heard at the meeting. Sen. Craig Blair, R-Berkeley, said he wanted to hear more about utilizing coal for energy by way of liquification. Referring to a TransGas coal-to-liquid plant in Mingo County, Blair said he wonders why the state isn't promoting it more.

"We're talking about a lot of jobs in West Virginia, but we're also talking about lower energy prices," Blair said. "Low energy prices give opportunity for the ability to attract businesses to the state."

Sen. Art Kirkendoll, D-Logan, said the state should be more proactive with projects like the coal-to-liquid plant.

"We're sitting on our thumbs waiting for these investors to come in with $2 billion," Kirkendoll said. "Why don't we go get the investors?"

In the next act, a daring trapeze act was attempted by someone with a brain:

The commission also heard from John Christensen, a member of the Berkeley County Economic Development Authority and employee at Mountain View Solar in Berkeley Springs. Christensen was there to make a case for fostering of the solar industry in West Virginia.

Christensen referred to HB3080, which would provide a 1 to 1.5 percent carve-out for solar technology in the state's energy portfolio.

"All the states that have this carve-out are doing great," Christensen said. "We want to be big. ... We want to be involved bringing more jobs to West Virginia."

But it wasn't enough to deflect attention away from the continual capering of the clowns:

But lawmakers questioned the worth of solar with its lower energy production in the state and its cost. Blair, who said he is supportive of renewable energy, said there should be a significant return on investment from the state, and he said it's just not there with solar.

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About the Author

Keryn Newman blogs here at StopPATH WV about energy issues, transmission policy, misguided regulation, our greedy energy companies and their corporate spin.In 2008, AEP & Allegheny Energy's PATH joint venture used their transmission line routing etch-a-sketch to draw a 765kV line across the street from her house. Oooops! And the rest is history.

AboutStopPATH Blog

StopPATH Blog began as a forum for information and opinion about the PATH transmission project. The PATH project was abandoned in 2012, however, this blog was not.

StopPATH Blog continues to bring you energy policy news and opinion from a consumer's point of view. If it's sometimes snarky and oftentimes irreverent, just remember that the truth isn't pretty. People come here because they want the truth, instead of the usual dreadful lies this industry continues to tell itself. If you keep reading, I'll keep writing.